Understanding Pre-rendering in Next.js Without SSR or SSG Methods

Question

js Community,

I'm currently exploring Next.js and its rendering capabilities, and I have some questions regarding the behavior of pre-rendering in scenarios where neither SSR (getServerSideProps) nor SSG (getStaticProps/getStaticPaths) methods are used.

1. If I create a Next.js page without using getServerSideProps or getStaticProps, does Next.js still pre-render the page? Is this different from a typical Client-Side Rendering (CSR) application?

// pages/main/index.tsx
export default function MainPage() {

return \<div\>Main Page....\</div\>
}

2. In the absence of these SSR or SSG methods, what exactly happens during the Next.js build process? Does the server still pass pre-rendered HTML to the client, as opposed to a pure CSR where the HTML is almost empty and the content is fully rendered in the browser?

3. Is there a tangible benefit in terms of SEO and initial page load performance when using Next.js for such pages, compared to a traditional CSR approach?

4. Lastly, is it necessary or beneficial to include a 'dummy' getServerSideProps function in a page to enable SSR, even if there's no specific data fetching or dynamic content involved?

I'm trying to understand the nuances of how Next.js optimizes the rendering process in different scenarios and how it impacts the performance and SEO of an application.

Thank you for your insights!

When working with Next.js, I built and deployed a website, and upon accessing the page, I examined the downloaded HTML document. From what I observed, it appeared that the page was pre-rendered and delivered from the server. I'm curious if my understanding and observation of this process are correct.

Answer 1

1. If I create a Next.js page without using getServerSideProps or getStaticProps, does Next.js still pre-render the page? Is this different from a typical Client-Side Rendering (CSR) application?

Yes! Static Rendering is by default now: https://nextjs.org/docs/app/building-your-application/rendering/server-components#static-rendering-default

Static Rendering (Default) With Static Rendering, routes are rendered at build time, or in the background after data revalidation. The result is cached and can be pushed to a Content Delivery Network (CDN). This optimization allows you to share the result of the rendering work between users and server requests.

And Yes, it's now rendered on the server rather than in the browser (client).

2. In the absence of these SSR or SSG methods, what exactly happens during the Next.js build process? Does the server still pass pre-rendered HTML to the client, as opposed to a pure CSR where the HTML is almost empty and the content is fully rendered in the browser?

Spot on! React using RSCs and Nextjs push server-rendered HTML to the client: https://nextjs.org/docs/app/building-your-application/rendering/server-components#how-are-server-components-rendered

3. Is there a tangible benefit in terms of SEO and initial page load performance when using Next.js for such pages, compared to a traditional CSR approach?

Tons! Speed, Lighthouse Javascript Bundle Size, Initial Page Load, First Contentful Paint (FCP), and more. See more benefits of server rendering: https://nextjs.org/docs/app/building-your-application/rendering/server-components#benefits-of-server-rendering

4. Lastly, is it necessary or beneficial to include a 'dummy' getServerSideProps function on a page to enable SSR, even if there's no specific data fetching or dynamic content involved?

Because it's by default, this is not necessary. You can continue to name your fetching functions getServerSideProps if you want, but it should not and cannot be an exported function like in NextJS v13

I hope this helps.